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Bill called last week; his feed costs were a concern. He asked if I could look at his ration for
his Jersey cows and comment on alternatives
and strategies. A summary of Bill's
feeding program is listed below (actual dairy farm in the Midwest). Some values are missing (such as the level of
each feed ingredient and nutritional profile), but the information is useful to
make decision and comments.

Bill's Feeding
Information

Feed costs are 9.5 cents per pound of dry matter
Feed costs is $4.47 per cow
Feed costs per 100 lb is $6.28 (converted to 3.5% fat corrected milk)
Cows have not ketosis in the last 10 cows and hit the road running
The herd is averaging 60 lb of milk containing 4.8% milk fat and 3.5% true
protein.

Let's evaluate each of Bill's feed ingredients he has
decided to include in his ration. We
will assume the ration is balanced and macro-minerals (such as salt and
calcium) are included (not listed).

Feed cost per pound of
dry matter at 9.5 cents per pound of dry matter is one cent per pound
higher than normal for Jersey cows. Holstein
guidelines are 7.5 to 8 cents per pound.
Jersey herds typically are one cent per pound of dry
matter higher due to lower feed intake and the need to build more nutrient
dense rations.

Feed cost
is $4.47 per cow converts to a feed cost of $6.28 per 100 pounds or cwt
of 3.5% energy-corrected milk base. This benchmark is modestly high
also (target
value is $5.75 per cwt). The formula for
energy corrected milk is pound of milk times 0.323 (19.4 pounds for
Bill's
herd) plus pound of milk fat times 12.82 (36.9 pounds for Bill's herd)
plus
pounds of true protein times 7.13 (14.9 pounds for Bill's herd)
resulting in
71.2 lb of 3.5% energy-corrected milk.

Feed efficiency was calculate to be 1.52 pounds of 3.5 lb of energy
corrected milk per pound of dry matter (calculated by dividing feed costs per
cow by 9.5 cents per pound of dry matter—both reported by Bill). A feed efficiency over 1.5 is excellent.

Hay and haylage prices
are modestly low (no forage quality values were reported). We use a value of 90 cents per point of
relative feed value (150 RFV times 0.9 equals $135 a ton for this quality
hay/haylage). Bill has a great buy or he
is not charging market prices for his hay/haylage raised on his farm. Bill's prices reflect that his crop
enterprise is profitable.

Corn silage at $24
a ton is low. Based on Illinois research, the factor for standing
corn for corn silage vs. corn grain is 8 (one ton of corn silage valued on an as
fed/wet corn silage basis contains 8 bushels of corn). Using this approach, Bill's corn silage could
be valued at $40 a ton at 33% dry matter including shrink and harvesting
charges. Price of corn silage: (8 times $4 a bushel for corn + $4 a ton to
chop and store silage) time 10% for shrink.
For Bill, his corn silage is calculate as (8 x $4) + ($4) + ($4) = $40 a
ton.

Ground corn at
$163 a ton is 8.1 cents a pound or $4.54 a bushel (high, but it is market price
including grinding and transportation costs).

Roasted soybeans
at $288 a ton is good price using FeedVal 3 (computer software program) based
on current
oil/fat and rumen undegraded protein content in roasted soybeans (roasted soybean quality
should have a protein dispersion index of 10 to 15 units).

Protect fat at
nine cents represents one quarter of pound of a commercial product. This product is "on the bubble" as it is
relatively expensive, the level of fat in the ration is not known (roasted
soybeans are included), and must be evaluated for its role on health and
reproduction.

Protected amino acids also
are "on the bubble" based on the methionine status. This decision must be based a rumen model
program. Bill's Jersey
cows are milking well with solid components which may reflect the value/need
for this product.

Probiotic product
could be removed as it is a 13 cent investment.
Bill and his nutritionist must decide why the product is included based
on research results. As probiotics
continue to be studied, we will need to pinpoint the bacteria type, number or
organisms needed, viability of bacteria in the storage and in the ration, cow
response anticipated, and handling characteristics.

Buffer at five
cents would remain in the ration as high milk yield is occurring and wet
silages are included. Check to be sure
0.75 percent of the total ration dry matter is fed as sodium bicarbonate (an
adequate amount to impact rumen response).

Organic minerals
would be maintained. Check the level of
each organic mineral being supplements (milligrams of zinc, copper, and
selenium).

Mycotoxin binder
at three cents per cow per day could be remain in Bill's based on the evidence
of mytoxin in the silages. Molds can be
present in haylage and corn silage depending on type of storage (bags or
bunkers), environment risks, and feed bunk stability.

Biotin is a
recommended to remain in the ration due to biotin's role increasing milk yield
and improving hoof health. A price of
1.3 cents seems low; double check the level of added biotin (15 to 20 mg per
cow per day).

In Summary

Bill's Jersey herd is
experiencing great health, solid milk yield, optimal
feed efficiency, and desirable components. Bill may not want to make any changes as few
concerns are occurring with his current ration and higher feed prices. Several strategies are listed below for Bill
and his nutritionist to consider.

Point one: Bill's forage
costs are low, but we will not change these plus we do not have the level of
dry matter being fed. His feed costs are
actually higher than listed.

Point two: Corn and roasted soybeans are good choices
along with buffer, organic trace minerals, and biotin.

Point three: Protected
fat, protected amino acid, and mycotoxin binder represent 26 cents per cow per
day. These are tough calls! These nutrients and additives can be
important to maintain cow health and performance, but represent six percent of
feed costs (could reduce feed costs to $5.77 per cwt).

Point four: Removing the
probiotic product at 13 cents per cow per day is another alternative.

These are challenging times.
Good cows convert expensive feed to profitable levels of milk. Nutrient requirements do not change with the higher
feed prices. Dairy managers and
nutritionist must look at each feed ingredient and decide its nutritional
impact and economic cost. If the ration
was "right" last year, it should be right in 2007 even though the cost is $1.10
per cwt of milk higher. The good news,
milk prices are increasing.